Dorozhka Voyiina
Dorozhka Voyiina was a fighting form created by Jedi Master Aron Kellemann. The name meant "Warrior's Path". It was not limited to lightsaber combat, instead encompassing multiple forms. The saber forms--one each for a single blade, saberstaff, and twin sabers--were the last to be developed; before becoming a Jedi, Kellemann spent some years working up the unarmed and bladed variants. Principles and Techniques *''Glaz Buri'', the "eye of the storm." This was the principle of cool-minded calculation, named for the calm at the center of a cyclone. *''Plavnaya Voda'', "flowing water." This was the principle of flexibility, allowing a practitioner to transition smoothly and quickly from defense to attack. *''Yasnost'', "clarity." This was the principle of focus and clarity of mind, ideally narrow enough to ignore physical pain and fatigue. This principle would lead to the development of Reka Cili meditation. *''Zagadochnost'', "inscrutability." This was the principle of unpredictability of movement by the simple mechanism of not telegraphing strikes. *''Becistemnost'', "patternlessness." This was the principle of unpredictability by the mechanism of having no pattern that might enable an opponent to make a prediction based on the practitioner's past movements. Subforms The subforms of Dorozhka Voyiina were developed in sequence, with one being adapted to the weapons of the next. The first to be created was Kulak Buri or Tempest's Fist, the unarmed variant. Subform:Kulak Buri *Weapons used: unarmed Kulak Buri, or "Tempest's Fist," was the first subform to be developed by Aron Kellemann, beginning its development as early as 5 ABY. It was a form of unarmed combat that somehow managed to be guarded and extremely active at the same time, taking street fighting techniques and combining them with principles from numerous other forms. Unlike many forms, it did not have many set attacks or maneuvers; it relied instead on adaptability. A large part of the reason for this was to prevent another practitioner of it from being able to predict a combatant's next move. Kulak Buri was an energetic form that required more stamina than strength. It also called for a strong sense of mind over matter, as with all Dorozhka Voyiina subforms. It excelled at striking from multiple directions at once and was often considered to be less civilized than many of the older forms of unarmed combat. It had a tendency to inflict painful and crippling blows. Subform:Krai Buri *Weapons used: knives and other small edged weapons. The name of this subform means "Tempest's Edge". It was developed after the destruction of Rapier Squadron, when Kellemann returned to Coruscant as civilian, and was strongly influenced by Tilani fighting techniques. The adaptation of the Kulak Buri subform to the knife functioned as an outlet for the anger and bitterness resulting from the loss of his squadron. Krai Buri was essentially an extension of Kulak Buri. It was a form equally adapted to slashing or stabbing, and often tended to overwhelm an opponent using numerous shallow cuts that would eventually weaken and opponent through pain and loss of blood. It was also, however, a more deadly form than the later forms, a result of Kellemann's mindset at the time; the form shows a ruthlessness and a willingness to inflict pain and kill far more readily. Subform: Myech Buri Myech Buri refers to "Tempest's Blade"; the form is also known as the "Way of the River". It was developed over the space of several years after Kellemann first began training in lightsaber combat and has a number of applications. Often it is referred to as the Dorozhka Voyiina itself, though this is not strictly accurate. It is not uncommon for a practitioner of Myech Buri to switch between several applications in a fight; the development of this capability into the subform went hand in hand with the development of the Jar'Kai Staff which makes switching extremely easy. In any application save for the Jar'Kai use of twin blades, the beginning posture was the same: the hilt of the weapon was held horizontally in front of the fighter, with the wrists crossed and the palms facing down. As a general rule, the user's dominant hand would be crossed over rather than under the off hand. This arrangement allowed for precise and highly controlled movements. It was not known for powerful attacks, but was capable of strong resistance to an opponent's attacks. In part due to its origins in unarmed and knife fighting, Myech Buri had a highly physical component to it; it was this, and not the saber, that was used as the primary weapon. As a result, facing a Myech Buri practitioner was far less likely to end in death if defeated, as the defeat would most likely come through a physical blow rather than a saber wound. Myech Buri had a strong defense due to its precision and resistance to attack, but was capable of an aggressive offense through its physical nature. Application: Jar'Kai Staff . The right hand, dominant, is crossed over the left. This image shows the jar'kai staff and saberstaff applications. In a single-blade application, the blade would be pointing to the left.]]Due to the weapon's makeup--two distinct weapons joined at the hilt--the use of the Jar'Kai staff generally began with only a single blade ignited, pointing toward the practitioner's off side. It was essentially the same position that began the form for a single blade; unlike the use of a standard single saber, however, it was not uncommon for a practitioner using a Jar'Kai staff to switch blade mid-fight. This gave the subform an added layer of unpredictability that was deepened by the weapon's ability to break into two separate weapons. Application: Saberstaff The use of the standard saberstaff likewise began with only one blade ignited, though it was not necessarily the end held held by the dominant hand. The leverage provided by the longer hilt of a saberstaff allowed the saber to be used slightly more freely as an offensive weapon, and gave it more resistance in defense; however, the weakness inherent in the use of the saberstaff--the longer and thus more vulnerable hilt--is still present. The use of paired sabers fell within this application of Myech Buri as well at any point when the sabers were joined at the hilts. Application: Jar'Kai The primary characteristic that defines the Jar'Kai application of Myech Buri is the physical nature that remains unchanged from the other applications. This application bears little resemblance to the others, as the characteristic horizontal crossed grip is not possible when each hand is holding a separate hilt; however other characteristics of the subform remain. The Jar'Kai application is for the most used only as the direct result of splitting a Jar'Kai staff; in the Myech Buri, at least, it is rarely used in its own right. Application: Single Blade In the opening posture of the single-bladed application, the emitter end of the hilt would be held in the user's dominant hand; For instance, a right-handed user would have his/her right hand crossed over his left, with the blade and right hand to the left side. Behind the Scenes The names for the subforms are all derived from the Russian language, in part based on the fact that the characters of Aron Kellemann and the Chyornov family are RP'd as all speaking a long-lost dialect very similar to Russian. In fact, the name Chyornov is itself distinctly Slavic in nature. Category:Fighting Forms